MESSAGE OF AN INTRODUCTION (VIDEO)
The laws of vows and oaths at the beginning of Parshat Mattot are introduced as having been given via the leaders of each tribe, a curious anomaly not found anywhere else in the Torah. Rabbi Dunner presents an anecdote from the life of Rabbi Akiva Eger to illustrate a simple explanation as to why the Torah breaks with an established precedent specifically for these laws.
(For the SoundCloud audio, scroll down) Arnold Toynbee, the great twentieth-century historian, devoted his life to studying civilizations — how they rise, how they flourish, and then, inevitably, how they... Read More